We went down stairs and I was sure I read suppressed regret in the faces of most of the guests at learning of the soft place in which Diogenes' lot had been cast. Silvia tearfully told Rob and Beth of my cruelty. [Illustration: Now and then above his howls, I heard Silvia's plaintive protests outside the door] "Do him good!" approved Rob heartily. "How mean men are!" declared Beth indignantly. "I am going up and comfort the poor little thing." I held up the key to the room with a grin, and she had to content herself by making unkind remarks about me. At the expiration of the allotted time, I handed Silvia the key. She took it from me without a word or a look. It was quite evident I was in wrong. In half an hour my wife came down, carrying Diogenes, who, dressed in fresh white clothes, was a good picture of an angel child. She passed me and went to a remote corner of the veranda and sat down. When he spied me, he leaped from her arms and ran to me. "Ocean," he said propitiatingly, "me love oo." I took him up. His arms clasped about my neck, and over his curly head, I winked at Silvia and Beth. Rob roared. CHAPTER XIV _A Midnight Excursion_ The night was Satan's own: dark, wind-shrieking, and Polydorish. No one saw us leave the hotel when, at a late hour, we started on our little excursion. On account of the darkness and the poor landing near the haunted house, we decided to go by the overland route. I managed to purloin a lantern from the kitchen to light our path. Rob and Beth kept behind Miss Frayne and myself, and in spite of the wildness of the weather, he was evidently pleading his suit, for now and then above the roar of the wind, I heard his ardent voice. Apparently Beth had not yet given him any encouragement. Going down the lane my lantern underwent a total eclipse, so we had a Jordan-like road to travel. Miss Frayne was quite impervious to unfavorable conditions, as it was a matter of bread and butter to her, she said, and she was accustomed to braving worse storms than this, and anyway she hadn't come here for a summer picnic. When we came into the grove it was so dark, I lost my bearings. "Why didn't we bring a flashlight?" asked Beth. "There were none at the hotel," I told her. "I know some boys," said Rob with a little laugh, "who would have lent us one--maybe." Fortunately we were well provided with safety matches and after striking a box or so, we gained the open. A rise of ground hid the house, but when we climbed to the top, the ghost loomed up ghastlier than ever. I felt the business-like Miss Frayne start and shiver as a little scream escaped her. I didn't wonder. Even I, knowing that it was an illusion and a snare, felt my flesh creeping as I looked at the ghastly thing in the window. Every now and then according to schedule a light flashed from the windows below. And then came the blood-curdling sounds--whimpers and groans that were rivaling the whistling of the wind.